Review of The Way He Looks (2014) by Alan W — 13 Nov 2014

Pure serendipity led me to this film the other day and because I didn't know how the story will turn out and I had low or no expectations, it made the discovery that it is a little gem of a film even more precious.

So if you watch it after reading this review, you might want to take a 1/2 star off the rating. However, I still hope you will find this coming of age film, with a twist, affecting and charming as I did.

The young ensemble of actors here feels organic and natural (if the very easy on the eye Ghilherme Lobo isn't really blind, he certainly does a good job playing one). The script addresses the issues without pandering or over-sentimentalizing - and the last few scenes of the film are so emotionally well-earned and romantic that it even manages to melt the ice inside this cynical viewer.

The film might be an little idealistic, in hindsight, and there are other issues that the film wisely sidestepped in order to maintain its focus, but it is nevertheless a sweet film that feels genuine and if you replace the Mamas and Papas' music with Belle and Sebastian (as they did here, showing off pretty good taste) it could be easily be a Brazilian update of Beautiful Thing (from back in the 90s) - and that is a real compliment in my books.